Donna Balciunas, M.S., received her degree in Counseling Psychology and has worked in the field of mental health for over 10 years. During this time, she has presented over 200 workshops to varied audiences at regional and national conferences on the topics of coping with stress, communication, anxiety, depression, and spiritual development. She is currently the Program Director of the Diabetes Treatment Center at Prince George's Hospital in Cheverly, MD.

Learn how the recognition of personal stress symptoms and fear based thinking is the beginning of the cure

Explore how to short-circuit stress by understanding "how" things happen

Learn to step-back from your problems and use body shifts to guide you to the underlying source of your stress

Learn about high and low energy clothes, and how they affect your stress levels, energy, and mood

Discover the two emotions that drive all others and their importance to your sense of well-being

Learn to get what you want by first giving it

Take home a list of powerful, perception-altering thoughts to use
whenever you feel emotionally distressed

Stress and anxiety are a part of life which we all experience to some degree during our lives. However, when stress takes control, it decreases the quality of life and affects our physical and mental healtb. if unattended, chronic stress also negatively affects medical conditions to which we are predisposed. It is, therefore,
of utmost importance that individuals raise their awareness level of their how stress happens before they experience burnout. Thispresentation focuses on the nature of stress and teaches the audience howto short-circuit the process.

Stress begins with a neutral, impersonal event, and the resulting stress is dependent on the nature of our thoughts about
the particular event, and on the idea that our belief system has been threatened. Physical symptoms, a poor sense of well-being and "acting out" behaviors are the consequence of unexamined, rigid belief systems. The warning signs are numerous and take the form 0f physical symptoms (muscle tension, poor sleep, or fatigue), cognitive impairment, (forgetfulness, judgment errors, poor concentration) or emotional symptoms (anger, irritability, emptiness), among many others. Workplace
stress reactions often take the form of increased tension between staff, absenteeism, filing of grievances, distrust, apathy, or sabotage. Attitudes of "it won't work" or "what's the use" become pervasive. Left un-addressed, these attitudes can lead to lowered moral and productivity and general dissatisfaction with life. In frustration, we think — there must be a better way...

Thispresentation teaches a better way. Steps can be taken to help curb stress and short-circuit its negative effects at each stage of the process. The audience learns "how" stressful events evolve and to use body shifts to reveal where the problem really lies, and how to fix it. They learn that effective coping begins by recognizing ones own individual warning signs of stress and identifying rigid belief systems. They will learn about the negative effects of judging, blaming,
controlling, attacking and defending. Energy draining habits are examined and replaced with those that increase a sense of well-being. The "mother" of all negative emotions is exposed, and replaced with a superior alternative, By consciously choosing a new approach to living, the audience learns that, indeed - there is a better way.

What audiences have said:

"Her presentation stuck to me like glue afterward. I still think of it each time I dress in an energy draining way."

"This is not a presentation to be taken lightly

- you're not just learning "tips" but really loaded information about stress and coping."

"Nothing like your usual stress management presentations which are often just subtle ways to get employees to produce more in the short term but create resentment in the
long-term"

"This is the best presentation I've heard on stress, and I've been to many..."

- you feel like she has experienced all the same stress that we all experience and can poke fun at herself."

"Exceptional detail- I appreciated her acknowledgment of reality."

"Thorough

— top-notch, good energy level and well presented"

"I learned the most from Donna Balciunas' presentation."

"Extremely useful

- everyone experiences stressful situations in one form or another. This was a very practical workshop and Donna provided many examples for us to
relate to. She is well-trained and pragmatic."

"Donna Balciunas' talents as a gifted public speaker has enabled us to present seminars that address the issue of early identification, intervention, and prevention of serious illness such as depression, anxiety and stress related disorders." MD Department of Health & Mental Hygiene

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